Investor Profile: Young Entrepreneurs Fund — Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

The Young Entrepreneurs Fund (YEF) is unlike almost any other investor on this list, because it does not behave like a venture fund at all. Launched on 7 April 2025 by veteran marketing strategist Harshavardhan Chauhaan, it is a $10 million initiative funded entirely by proceeds from his book, #NCAYB (Nobody Cares About Your Brand). Instead of equity, it offers grants to raw, pre-revenue ideas.

Thesis

The thesis is that consumer trust, not product features or decades-old marketing frameworks, now decides commercial success. Harshavardhan Chauhaan argues that the real revolution will come from garages and online communities, not boardrooms. The fund therefore prioritises societal impact and scalability over spreadsheets and immediate metrics, and aims to support innovators in tier 2 and tier 3 regions who struggle to access traditional venture capital.

Sectors and stages

YEF targets early-stage, pre-revenue founders in four areas: deep tech, clean energy, rural platforms, and national intellectual property. Deep tech covers artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and advanced robotics. Clean energy covers renewable generation, green infrastructure, and carbon-neutral technologies. Rural platforms cover agritech tools, rural fintech, and digital literacy. National IP covers indigenous innovations, from traditional crafts to climate-resilient agriculture, scaled for global resonance.

Fund size and cheque size

The initiative is sized at $10 million, deployed as grants, not equity. Grants range from $10,000 to $250,000 per idea. That structure matters: a grant does not dilute ownership, but it also does not bring the follow-on capital, governance, or signalling of an equity investor.

Notable portfolio

No individual grantees or portfolio companies have been publicly named for YEF. That is a material honesty flag: a fund built on backing grassroots innovators has not, in public sources, attached names to its first bets. Founders should ask for named examples, and for what those grantees built afterwards, before treating the fund's claims as a track record.

Partners and team

Harshavardhan Chauhaan is the founding visionary behind YEF. Ashish Soni, an IIT Bombay alumnus, serial entrepreneur, and leader in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, has joined as a pro bono mentor and board adviser, with over 14 years across innovation, product development, and tech consulting. Mentorship also comes from global brand strategists, growth marketers, and serial entrepreneurs who understand consumer trust and fractional loyalty.

Programs run

The flagship support program is the Bharat Fellowships program, described as India's own Y Combinator-style platform. Students from premier institutions such as the IITs and IIMs take internships lasting three to twelve months, guiding grassroots innovators directly through the YEF platform. The idea is to pair raw ideas with capable young operators and mentors.

Credits and perks

No credits, perks, or partner-discount package has been publicly disclosed by YEF. Its non-capital offer is mentorship, the Bharat Fellowships network, and association with the #NCAYB thesis and community: brand, trust, and go-to-market thinking.

How to apply for funding

No public application portal or form for YEF could be found in the sources reviewed, so there is no published route to submit an idea. Learning how to get funding from the Young Entrepreneurs Fund therefore requires a direct approach to its team or mentors, stating the idea, its societal impact, and why it fits deep tech, clean energy, rural platforms, or national IP.